The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Poland urged citizens who are in Iran to immediately leave the country and refrain from traveling there. The message was published on the MFA’s official X page on January 14, and the agency raised the security level amid the region’s growing instability.
If remaining in the country depends on one’s status as a citizen, the MFA urges extreme caution: avoid crowded places and regularly monitor official notices from diplomatic missions.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs calls for immediate departure from Iran and advises against any travel to this country”
– Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Poland
Chronicle of events in Iran and the international community’s reaction
The confrontation in the Middle East and mass protests in Iran have prompted new warnings for foreigners: according to the independent human rights organization HRANA, more than 2,500 people have died.
Earlier such warnings were issued by many EU countries and the United States, explaining the risks of arbitrary detentions of foreigners and threats to civilian safety.
Protests in Iran began on December 28 due to rising prices and depreciation of the national currency, and later evolved into demands for theocratic rule. The forces of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the police and militias are using force against demonstrations. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei controls the army, the courts, and the media, relying on the IRGC as a key instrument for preserving power.
The fiercest clashes have been recorded in western regions, the capital, Tehran and the southern province of Sistan and Baluchestan. The head of Iran’s police stated that a large number of protest leaders have been arrested, coordinated allegedly via social networks; in Tehran around 40 people were arrested for alleged fake posts that could inflame public resonance. U.S. President Donald Trump expressed willingness to support the protesters and take measures if the situation worsens, while Khamenei replied that Iran would not yield to the enemy and ordered “to put the rioters in their place”.
As of January 11, 2026, reports indicated 538 killed, of which 490 were protesters and 48 were security forces personnel, and more than 10,600 arrests in two weeks of unrest. The son of the last shah, Reza Pahlavi, urged Iranians to seize state institutions, and the diaspora to support embassy actions by replacing the Islamic Republic’s flags with national flags.
The Iranian authorities say that American troops and United States facilities in the region could become legitimate targets if Washington intervenes in the country’s internal affairs; in response the United States has stated readiness to react depending on how events unfold.